Whole Grain Yogurt Biscuits {with Honey}

June 15, 2012

My little sister started baking before I had the slightest interest in it. She had a passion for it from a very young age, while I just dabbled in it as a kid. So growing up, I was able to pick up a few tips and tidbits from her and it has undoubtedly influenced my baking today. One thing I remember her doing was constantly putting oats in cookies because they were somehow “guilt-free” that way. However misleading that is, I find myself doing the same thing and not just with cookies. I use oats or other whole grains in a lot of my recipes in an attempt to add a little “health” to my baking. As a person who bakes a lot and eats it all, the more nutrition I can add (however little it may be) makes all the difference.

While I can’t add whole grains to everything I make, when it comes to something breakfast-y like these biscuits, it just makes sense. Instead of using all-purpose flour, the bulk of these biscuits come from ground oats and whole grain pastry flour. The addition of yogurt (instead of cream or buttermilk) also makes them feel a little better for you.

Not only do the grains give the biscuits a nutritional boost, but they also make them taste unbelievably good. They have an almost cornbread-like flavor and because there’s already enough butter baked in, all you need is a simple drizzle of honey to finish them off. I suppose you could also smear on some fruit preserves or jam, but honey is the way to go in my book. And if you can find a good local honey, that’s even better.

I have also made these biscuits using an equal amount of store bought oat flour. If you choose to do this instead of grinding your own oats, you can easily make the dough by hand with a pastry blender instead of having to take your food processor out.

Heat the oven to 450 degrees and place a very clean baking sheet on the middle rack to heat as well.

In a food processor, process the oats until finely ground (essentially making oat flour). Then add the pastry flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda to the food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until the butter is about the size of peas, about 15 to 20 pulses.

In a small bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt and 1 egg, and add it to the food processor. Pulse until the dough just comes together. Be careful not to over-process the dough at this point—a few dry patches are okay.

Lightly flour a clean surface and dump the dough out. With floured hands, knead the dough a couple of times to bring it all together, adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking. Gently pat the biscuit dough until it is about 1-inch thick. Flour a 2-inch biscuit cutter and cut out the biscuits, re-rolling the scraps as needed. If at any point in this process the butter gets too warm and the dough is too sticky or soft to work with, place it in the fridge for a few minutes to firm up—you want everything to stay cold, especially before baking.

Carefully place the biscuits on the hot preheated baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden. Cool for a few minutes, then serve warm with a drizzle of your favorite honey.